Linda Chavez makes small-government argument for immigration reform

Linda Chavez makes small-government argument for immigration reform

GOING AGAINST THE CONSERVATIVE TIDE: Former Reagan administration executive Linda Chavez argues in favor of immigration reform from a small-government perspective. But she’s getting pushback from opponents on the right.

By Rob Nikolewski │ New Mexico Watchdog

SANTA FE, N.M. – She’s sure to get flak from the political right who insist the border is porous, but long-time Republican and former Reagan administration official Linda Chavezsays the Border Patrol shouldn’t be spending its time and money “chasing down gardeners and nannies.”

Instead, she argues, immigration laws should be revamped along what she says are small-government principles.

“We shouldn’t have laws that are ridiculous,” Chavez told New Mexico Watchdog during a recent visit to Santa Fe.

“We have a law now that says if you want to have somebody mow your lawn every week, you better check their papers and you better keep a record … and keep the documentation for five years. And if you fire that person and hire somebody two weeks later, you better keep those papers too. That’s big government and Big Brother writ large … Since when it is a conservative idea that I have to call the federal government to ask to hire somebody? How is that conservative?”